Container for air treating devices



Jan. 14, 1969 s. l. WARD.

CONTAINER FOR AIR TREATING DEVICES Sheet of 2 Filed Jan. 19, 1965 INVENTOR. f K420 iTTORNEY Jan. 14, 1969 s. I. WARD 3,421,839

CONTAINER FOR AIR TREATING DEVICES Filed Jan. 19, 1965 Sheet 2 sig a W ATTORNEY United States Patent Office 3,421,839 Patented Jan. 14, 1969 3,421,839 CONTAINER FOR AIR TREATING DEVICES Samuel I. Ward, West Hartford, Conn., assignor to Crystal Research Laboratories, Inc., Hartford, Conn., a corporation of Connecticut Filed Jan. 19, 1965, Ser. No. 426,621 US. CI. 2174 Int. Cl. A611 9/00 Claims ABSTRACT OF THE DISCLOSURE This invention relates to air treating devices or the like and, more particularly, to a novel device for packaging cartridges of deodorizing and dehumidifying materials that are particularly useful for freshening air in storage and clothes closets, refrigerators, or the like.

A salient feature of the invention is the provision of a container made of a flexible plastic open mesh material that is filled with one or more replaceable air treating cartridges whose thin and fragile air permeable walls are safeguarded from breaking without preventing access of surrounding air thereto.

An object of the invention is to provide a simple and inexpensive device which may be readily assembled of simple components and packaged in such a manner that the container may be easily disassembled for replacing cartridges with fresh ones.

A further object of the invention is to provide a simple packaging device which may be used repeatedly with fresh charges of air treating cartridges or the like thereby realizing considerable economies for the consumer.

Still other objects and advantages of the invention will be apparent from the specification.

The features of novelty which are believed to be characteristics of the invention are set forth herein and will be best understood, both as to their fundamental principles and as to their particular embodiments, by reference to the specifiction and accompanying drawings, in which:

FIGURE 1 is a perspective view, partly broken away, of the device of the present invention;

FIGURE 2. is an exploded view, partly broken away, of the device shown in FIGURE 1;

FIGURE 3 is a view taken on line 3-3 of FIGURE 1;

FIGURE 4 is a view taken on line 44 of FIGURE 1;

FIGURE 5 is a perspective view similar to FIGURE 1 of another embodiment of the invention;

FIGURE 6 is a greatly enlarged view of several portions of the device shown in FIGURE 5, some parts being broken away, some parts being shown in phantom outline, and some parts being omitted;

FIGURE 7 is a view taken on line 7-7 of FIGURE 5;

FIGURE 8 is a fragmentary perspective view of a still further embodiment of the present invention; and

FIGURE 9 is a partial sectional view of the embodiment shown in FIGURE 8.

Referring now to the drawing in detail, there is shown in FIGURE 1 a perspective view of the package of the present invention comprising a tubular container, generally designated 11, made of flexible webbed plastic material comprising a first set of parallel strands 12 arrayed at an angle in one direction relative to the axis of said container, and a second set of strands 13 arrayed at an opposite angle relative to the axis of said container, said strands 12 and 13 being integrally bonded at their intersections 14 to form a unitary webbed tubular structure which is flexible and pliable.

Positionable over the bottom end portion of tube 11 is a bottom cap 16 formed of a sheet of plastic material which has an integral annular collar 17 extending upwardly therefrom.

Positionable over the top end portion of tube 11 is a top cap 18 similar to bottom cap 16, said top cap 18 having an annular collar 19- which extends downwardly therefrom. Both caps 16 and 18 have sufficient stiffness to form at both ends of container 11 a sufiicient support therefor to enable said container to be filled with various materials.

Each cap 16 and 18 has a pair of cross slits 21 and 22, respectively, formed therein, as shown in FIGURES 1, 2 and 3. In order to secure the container and caps together, there is provided an elastic cord 23 which may be made of suitable material such as rubber or the like and which, in some cases, is enclosed with a woven fabric material. The respective ends of cord 23 are attached to the mid-sections of pins 24 and 26 which may be made of metal, plastic, or other suitable material.

When assembling the device shown in FIGURE 1, elastic cord 23 is lowered through the center of container 11 and pin 24 is thrust beyond its length between the yieldable edges of cruciform slits 21 in bottom cap 16, after which said pin is rotated at its juncture with said cord to lie flat against the outer or bottom surface of said cap, as shown in FIGURE 2.

Pin 26 on the other end of elastic cord 23 extending upwardly through tube 11 is thrust upwardly through yieldable cruciform slits 22 in top cap 18. Cord 23 has sufiicient length to form a loop 27 therein as shown in FIGURES 1 and 2. Pin 26 is thereafter thrust downwardly beyond its own length through cruciform slits 22 in top cap 18, after which cord 23 at loop 27 is pulled upwardly to cause said pin to lie flat on the bottom surface of top cap 18.

In order to cause caps 16 and 18 to be continuously urged yieldably into closure engagement with their respective ends of container 11, the tension of cord 23 is adjusted by varying the size of loop 27 to produce the desired result. As loop 27 is enlarged by pulling manually upon cord 23, greater tension is exerted by cord 23 between caps 16 and 18 and when loop 27 is diminished, the tension on cord 23 is decreased.

Once the requisite tension is imposed upon cord 23, the size of loop remains substantially constant, while the tension on cord 23 between caps 16 and 18 remains substantially constant by virtue of the frictional engagement of said cord between the yieldable edge of cruciform slits 22 in top cap 18.

In some embodiments, a single slit in each end cap may be substituted for the cruciform slits. Such a single slit would have yieldable edges to permit passage therethrough of pins 24 and 26 and of cord 23, while at the same time their edges would normally grasp said cord to maintain it in position.

Before top cap 18 is applied to the top of container 11, one or more cartridges 31 made of suitable air permeable fabric or paper are inserted into said container and thereafter said cap is fitted over the top of said container and maintained thereover under the tension of cord 23 to secure said cartridges in position. Cartridges 31 may be filled with any one or a combination of air deodorizing or odor absorbing materials 32 such as activated charcoal, chlorophyllins, and the like, in suitable granular or dispersed form. Where a dehumidifying effect is desired, the cartridges may be filled with a moisture absorbing material such as silica gel or calcium sulfate or the like.

When the cartridges 31 have become exhausted of their odor absorbing or moisture absorbing capacity, cap 16 or 18 is lifted from either respective end of container 11 against the action of elastic cord 23 whereby said cartridges may be readily removed and discarded and fresh cartridges replaced in said container, after which cap 16 or 18 may be repositioned and maintained in place under the action of cord 23.

The assembled container with its cartridges may be placed in any suitable position in a closet, refrigerator, or other location where it is to perform either or both deodorizing and dehumidifying functions. By virtue of the open mesh form of container 11, air passes freely therethrough to be acted upon by the materials 32 in cartridges 31. Container 11 has sufiicient resilience to accommodate itself to packing with multiple cartridges which may bulge its walls or deform its shape somewhat due to uneven packing. Nevertheless, the mesh walls of container 11 possess suflicient strength to protect the thin permeable walls of cartridges 31 from accidental damage or tearing.

Furthermore, loop 27 of cord 23 may be utilized to hand the device upon a suitable peg or hook in order to suspend it in the open for more ready access to the surrounding air.

It is understood that the cross-sectional contours of container 11 and of caps 16 and 18 may be any suitable shape other than circular as shown without impairing their respective functions as described hereinbefore.

An alternative embodiment of the invention is shown in FIGURES 5, 6 and 7, wherein cross slits 21 and 22 of caps 16 and 18 of the embodiment shown in FIGURES 1-3 are replaced by single, central apertures 41 and 42 in caps 16 and 18, respectively.

The pin 24 on the lower end of cord 23 extends through aperture 41 in cap 16 and lies flat against the bottom surface thereof as shown in FIGURE 6, in the same manner as shown in FIGURE 2. The upper portion of elastic cord 23 extends through aperture 42 in cap 18 above which said cord is formed into a loop 27, the end of said cord being attached to another portion thereof above the top surface of cap 18 by means of a clamp 43 in the form of a metal band or staple which bears upon the external surface of cap 18. The joining of the two portions of cord 23 by means of clamp 43 is performed after a suitable tension has been applied to the intermediate portion of cord 23 located between caps 16 and 18 whereby the latter are urged toward each other to enclose container 11.

In the embodiment shown in FIGURES 8 and 9, the

container 45 is made of a plurality of spaced apart circular strands 46 in substantially parallel array and plurality of spaced apart longitudinal strands 47 in substantially parallel array, said strands 46 and 47 being bonded at their respective intersections and forming rectangular apertures substantially evenly distributed throughout said container. The end caps in the embodiment of FIGURES 8 and 9 comprises a circular disc 48 extending partially into the interior of the container 45 and having an integral collar 49 which fits snugly with the interior surface of said container. Formed integrally with collar 49 is an outwardly extending flange 51 which bears against the end of container 45 whereby, under the tension of cord 23, said cap is maintained securely in position in order to enclose the end of the container.

It is understood that strands 46 and 47 may be made of any suitable material such as plastic or fibers, Or the like. It is desirable that such strands be somewhat flexible in order to preserve the integrity of the cartridges of air treating material therein and are sufiiciently resilient so that the walls of the container may be yieldable to accommodate the packing of a plurality of cartridges therein without damaging the contents thereof. End cap 48 and its collar and flange may be made of any suitable material such as sheet metal, plastic, or the like, that serve the purpose of enclosing the ends of the container.

Instead of being made up of a plurality of criss-crossing strands, the containers illustrated in the various embodiments disclosed herein may be made of a unitary sheet material having a plurality of apertures punched or otherwise formed throughout the walls thereof to permit access and transmission of the atmosphere therethrough for action thereon by the air treating materials in the cartridges. It is also understood that the apertures in the walls of the container may be formed in circular, elliptical, square, or other suitable shapes.

What is claimed is:

1. An air treating device comprising an open ended tube, a plurality of apertures in the wall of said tube to permit air movement through said device, first and second end caps removably mounted on respective ends of said tube, at least one slit in each cap, an elastic cord extending through the interior of said tube, a first pin connected intermediate its ends to one end of said cord, and a second pin connected intermediate its ends to the other end of said cord, said first pin being extendable through the yieldable edges of the slit in said first cap to lie flat upon the outer surface thereof, the second pin being extendable through the yieldable edges of the slit in said second cap to form a loop in said cord, said second pin being returned through the yieldable edges of the slit in said second cap to lie fiat on the interior surface of said second cap, the yieldable edges of the slit in said second cap frictionally engaging said cord to maintain the formation of said loop, the portion of the elastic cord in the interior of said tube yieldably urging said caps into closure engagement with their respective ends of said tube.

2. A device according to claim 1 wherein said slit in each end cap is cruciform.

3. An air treating device comprising an open ended tube, a plurality of apertures distributed throughout the walls of said tube, first and second end caps removably mountable on respective ends of said tube, an aperture in the central portion of each of said caps, an elastic cord extending through the interior of said tube, one end of said cord being connected to said first cap; the other end portion of said cord extending through the aperture of said second cap, said end portion being formed into a loop, a clamp connecting the second mentioned end of said cord to an intermediate portion of said cord externally to said second cap, said clamp bearing upon the external surface of said second cap, the portion of said cord between said two caps being under yieldable tension to urge both of said caps releasably into position over the respective ends of said tube.

5 6 4. A device according to claim 3 wherein each end cap References Cited comprises a disc bearing against its respective end of said UNITED STATES PATENTS tube, and an integral flange on each disc extending parti- 2,516,340 7/1950 Pirchio 2174 XR otgebg and fitting snugly with the external surface of 2,557,432 6/1951 Holstedt u 2 1 4 XR 5 2,737,291 3/1956 Rochestie 220-55 5. A device according to claim 3 wherem each end 2903 814 9/1959 Greer 206 1 XR cap comprises a disc located in the interior of a respective 311381432 6/1964 Kleinhans 21 74 XR end portion of said tube a short distance from the end MORRIS O- WOLK, Primary Examiner thereof, an integral collar on each (1150 fittmg snugly with the interior surface of said tube, an integral flange extend- 10 BARRY RICHMAN Assistant Examiner ing outwardly from said collar and bearing against the US. Cl. X.R. respective end of said tube. 21 53, 55, 122; 206-1; 220-55 

